By Nancy Abraham
Allstate Insurance Company
Andrew Robertson, President and CEO of BBDO Worldwide, presented the results of a proprietary study on consumer rituals, how they are different from habits and routines and how they can be used to drive incremental volume and build business for brands. Mr. Robertson opened his remarks by sharing in meticulous detail, and in his delightful British accent (who doesn’t love a British accent?), how he started his day, including his practice of checking his e-mail right after getting out of bed (apparently many of us do this) and his twirling exercises in the shower. While it may have been too much information for some, it clearly illustrated what he means by a ritual. A ritual is defined as a “series of actions that transform from one emotional state to another.” A ritual is different from both a habit and a routine. A habit is an action that is repeated often and a routine is a series of actions that are repeated often. However, they differ from a ritual in that they do not transform from one emotional state to another. The research methodology was based on watching people live their lives. It was conducted in 28 countries and included both qualitative and qualitative research and interviews with sociologists and psychologists. The results indicate that there are four global rituals: · Preparing for Battle – which is all about preparing to take on the world in the morning. Things like cleansing, fueling (many people use the same mug for their coffee), dressing, war painting and gathering intelligence. In this ritual, you move from a neutral, cocooned state to a “preparing for battle” or “taking on the world” state. In fact, 79% of respondents have a sequence they follow every day (96% in China, 64% in Canada) and 82% rely on the same brands every morning (great for brands that are already in that set). · Sexing Up – which is different than preparing for battle, and more like preparing for a date. It includes actions like cleansing, grooming (often done outside the home at salons, etc.), connecting with friends (sharing what you are wearing), indulging (often taking longer to get ready and using more expensive products) and preening in front of the mirror (remember that scene in Saturday Night Fever when John Travolta was getting ready to go dancing??). This ritual transforms you from your normal self to your most confident self. And yes, in case you were wondering, women do take longer to “sex up” than men…90 minutes for women and 32 minutes for men. |
· Returning to Camp – which is all about coming home and moving from a tense state to a more relaxed one. It includes actions such as changing clothes, cleansing/washing the day away, escaping, reflecting, grazing and drinking.
· Locking Down – which is all about moving from a relaxed to a secure emotional state. It includes a series of steps such as checking windows, doors, kids, animals and getting ready for bed. Mr. Robertson stated that it makes sense to promote taking a Bayer aspirin at night to protect against heart disease given that people are in a state of feeling secure and protected.
So, does this research suggest that people are receptive to messaging only during rituals? Can we effectively engage consumers outside of rituals?
And thinking about the category in which I work, how do we apply this research to a brand, like insurance, that is not predicated on daily usage in a ritual? Does this mean that we should only communicate to consumers about insurance during the “Locking Down” ritual when they are feeling secure? Perhaps this does stimulate new ideas and does offer a different approach to consumer behavior, but do people really want to think about insurance before they go to bed??
The presentation prompted other questions, such as, is there ROI data that shows that the ritual approach is most effective? Can all brands really expect to become part of a ritual as I noted above? Or can brands drive consumers to new rituals?
Overall, I think this is a unique approach to understanding consumer behavior. I really liked that it looked at consumers as people and tried to get to the core of human behavior. As Mr. Robertson said it is not an “or” but an “and” and it provides another lens to observe human behavior.
Recent Comments